Wednesday, May 30, 2007

I love puff pastry. I have to admit it. I know it’s not light or healthy and not good at all for my waistline, but the thing is delicious.
I never buy puff pastry exactly because I’m not that kind of moderate lady who knows when to stop eating something unless I’m at a party or having lunch with my bosses – that’s when I pretend to be that kind of lady.

There was some puff pastry left because of this recipe and since I’m not into wasting food – even when it’s fattening as hell - I used it to make a quick lunch. It was great because I needed to be back in the kitchen to finish the gateau.

I got the idea from this book – it was a potato, goat’s cheese and rosemary tart. My tart was made with the cheese and the broccolini left from our Saturday night pizza.

I liked it so much that I decided to use it as my entry for this Weekend Herb Blogging, this time hosted by Kalyn, the great mind behind this great event.

Preheat the oven to 205ºC/400ºF.
Cut the broccolini florets into bite-sized portions and quickly steam or blanch them – I prefer to steam because they remain firmer and greener. Set aside to cool.
Mix the two types of cheese in a small bowl.
Cut a 25x20cm rectangle on your puff pastry and place it on a lined baking sheet. Spread the broccolini florets on top, leaving the borders without filling (2.5cm should work).
Season with salt and pepper.
Spread the cheese over the broccolini and then top with the rosemary leaves.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and puffed.
Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

I think it can serve 2 with something on the side – I had ¾ of the tart and nothing else. João didn’t want tart but when he saw me eating it he kept asking for bites (he was having spaghetti, for crying out loud).

That looks so savoury and good! I know what you mean about puff pastry, it just needs to be eaten in large amounts to be fully appreciated ;) I have the second half of mine in the freezer, it keeps popping into my mind, oddly enough :)

I'm not one of those moderate types of ladies either, so I'm laughing. I try, but when things are really good I have a hard time stopping with just a small amount. I think this sounds just delicious. Oddly enough, for my quirky diet this would be a better choice than plain white bread or something sugary. All the butter in the puff pastry makes it lower on the glycemic index (slower to turn to sugar) so there you have it!

I have always wanted to have a puff pastry stash just to make tarts like these (and yes, I've drooled over the ones in that same book!). I think I will have to go with store bought for now...I'm not brave enough to hazard an attempt at homemade and it's just to hot here I think to be successful at it! But one day I will try... :)

I chuckled picturing João eating spaghetti while you were having this gorgeous and tasty looking tart!

Men! But my husband says I do that with chips(fries) when I'm pretending to be one of those sort of ladies. No chips for me please, then I ask for one of his, then another, so now when I say no to chips/fries he orders them anyway. This looks tasty and I'd like some for my elevenses please. Amanda

I love puff pastry too (think the butter or "evil" oil/fats is the culprit seducing me). I still have leftover puff pastry left and after I used them all up, I think it's gonna be a while for me to buy them again. Need to control and refrain myself :O

Ah, I totally understand what you mean by not being that kind of moderate lady. Unlike you, I actually pretend to be that kind of lady when I'm at a party by getting other people get second (or third!) helpings for me!